A 2026 ranking by a Stanford University research group lists 121 Vietnamese scientists from 44 institutions among the world’s top 2% based on career‑long impact. This shows that Vietnam’s research community is gaining global recognition, and the details reveal which schools are leading the success.

The Stanford ranking evaluates citation impact with the h‑index, the co‑authorship‑adjusted hm‑index and authorship positions, all drawn from Scopus data. These indicators together form a career‑long impact score.

VinUniversity leads the list with the largest number of top scientists, counting 16 researchers. It is followed by Ton Duc Thang University with 14 and Duy Tan University with 13, while Vietnam National University, Hanoi and Hanoi University of Science and Technology also contribute several scholars.

Among the 121 Vietnamese scientists, Prof. David R. Bangsberg of VinUniversity ranks highest at No. 8,926 globally, and Hoang Anh Tuan of Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport ranks second at No. 11,632. Vietnam National University, Hanoi is the only public university with two scientists in the top‑10 Vietnamese ranks: Prof. Dr. Tran Xuan Bach (No. 22,065) and Prof. Dr. Nguyen Dinh Duc (No. 27,065).

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Dinh Duc has appeared in the ranking for eight consecutive years. In engineering and technology, he holds the No. 177 position among nearly 158,000 scientists worldwide, placing him in the top 0.11 % based on career‑long impact.

The Stanford data confirms that Vietnamese researchers are increasingly visible in the world’s most cited scientists, and that a few forward‑looking universities are driving this achievement. Readers should remember that VinUniversity, Ton Duc Thang and Duy Tan are the main hubs behind the country’s rising scientific influence.